Behind Bars, the Detention of Migrants in and from the East and Horn of Africa

The use of detention is widespread in the main destination and transit countries affecting migrants in and from countries in East Africa and the Horn. Instead of being a measure of last resort, detention of migrants is a routine practice in some of these countries. Though many states consider detention to be a deterrence measure, in fact, more migrants are on the move in the region in spite of the threat of it. The threat of detention has fueled the smuggling economy, which has become too lucrative to ignore and corrupted many a state official.